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The chants of "It's a four-peat" rained down from the Pottsville student section.

When the buzzer sounded, the Crimson Tide bench rushed the Martz Hall floor and mobbed each other at center court, some holding up "No. 4" signs with their fingers.

Another year, another Schuylkill League boys' basketball title for Pottsville.

The fourth one followed a similar format as the first three - its star player dominated and the Crimson Tide had an exceptional night on defense.

Brandon Bridy scored a game-high 18 points and Pottsville's defense held Mahanoy Area to the lowest point total in a Schuylkill League boys' championship game en route to a 35-21 victory Friday night.

Sophomore Travis Blankenhorn added eight points and eight rebounds for Pottsville, which won its 13th overall league championship, thanks in large part to a another dominating defensive performance.

"That's what we are at Pottsville," said Bridy, who's been a starter for the Tide since he was a sophomore. "We pride ourselves on defense."

It's the main reason the streak continues. The 21 points Pottsville allowed was lowest since the Tide held Marian to 25 in 2010. North Schuylkill also held Williams Valley to 25 points in 2009.

Everybody had a hand in Friday's victory. It was extra special for senior Bobby Witman, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL and LCL he suffered during the football preseason. He went through nine months of rehabilitation, returning for the football season this past fall.

"It is great to come back and get four in a row, especially last year, missing the entire year," he said. "I finally got one of my own."

The Tide (20-4) got some even better news from the Lehigh Valley later Friday when Bangor knocked off Wilson 51-47 in overtime in the Colonial League championship game. It means that Pottsville will be the No. 1 seed when District 11 Class AAA playoffs begin next week.

First, the Tide had to take care of business against the Golden Bears, who were making their first appearance in the league finals since 2007 and were coming off a thrilling, come-from-behind, 42-39 semifinal victory Wednesday over Blue Mountain.

Led by a stifling effort by the Crimson Tide guards, Pottsville limited the Golden Bears (18-5) to 9-for-36 (25 percent) shooting from the floor and forced 21 turnovers, with 14 coming in the first half as the Tide built a 23-9 halftime advantage.

"They were just too good," Mahanoy Area coach Mickey Holland said. "Defensively, they are a step above everybody that we face. They are big, they are quick, strong, so well coached. They are never in the wrong spot. They know what you want to do and they take it away."

One key for the Tide's defense Friday was shutting down Mahanoy Area's Tyler Cavenas. The 6-foot-4 center finished the night with a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds, but was held in check most of the night.

The 6-5 Witman was responsible for guarding Cavenas most of the night, with help from Eli Nabholz and John Toomey. Witman wanted to use his reach and speed to get in front of Cavenas.

"We had backside help the whole time so I just got to front him a little bit and try to use my speed to get around him," said Witman, who had two steals. "I had a lot of help from everybody else."

Out front, Bridy held the Bears' Dylan Mahmod, who keyed Wednesday's comeback victory, to two points on 1-of-10 shooting, including an 0-for-6 effort on 3-pointers.

"I tried to get him off the 3-point line a lot," Bridy said. "His dominant hand is the left so I was forcing him right, making him go to his right, and see if I could get a steal. I did that a couple of times. I think I did a good job on him."

Ryan Coyle was responsible for guarding point guard Kyle McGee. Coyle set an early tone as he had a steal on the Bears' first possession. He was fouled on his way to basket and hit 1-of-2 from the line.

Coyle then forced Mahanoy Area into a turnover on its next possession, one of the eight it had in the first quarter.

"I was just trying to make it hectic for him to make a pass, even take a dribble and keep hounding him," Coyle said. "Tonight we made it a point to start out fast and finish strong."

Pottsville led 10-3 after the first quarter and by 14 at the half. The closest the Bears got was late in the third quarter when Brian Miller hit a 3-pointer from the wing, making it 25-16.

"I thought it was our most consistent effort the entire year," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "We didn't take a possession off. I was really proud of our guys. I was really proud of our guys on both ends." Game Summary

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